Bristol Rovers new stadium plans back on track

20 March 2014

Bristol Rovers' plans for a new 21,700-seater stadium are back on track after a legal challenge was dismissed.

Sainsbury's were given the go-ahead to redevelop Rovers' current Memorial Stadium site, paving the way for the new UWE Stadium to be built in its place, with the Pirates hopeful work will begin this summer once contractual issues are resolved.

The legal challenge came from campaign group TRASHorfield, whose complaints were thrown out.

"This delay has cost us a lot of time and money, but we are now able to push forward once again," chairman Nick Higgs told the club's official website.

"We will now work closely with our partners at UWE, Sainsbury's, South Gloucestershire Council, Bristol City Council and Buckinghams to finalise the outstanding contractual issues which have been slowed down because of this process.

"Once these have been ironed out, we still aim to be on site to start the build in the summer, with the hope of moving into the new stadium during the 2015/16 season.

"The new stadium is not only vital for securing the future of Bristol Rovers, it will also be a massive boost for the local economy, creating many much-needed jobs at two different sites."